The giant golem that Rubina and the others had modified and activated ignored her commands. No sooner had it raised its fist than it slammed it down, punching the empty ground.
"Kyaa!"
Clods of earth went flying. The golem lost its balance and tumbled over.
"W-what!?"
"Wh-what happened?"
A second later, the shower of dirt pelted their tent.
"Rubina! What's going on!?" a startled Amanda shouted.
"I-I don't know! It just suddenly went berserk— Kyaa!"
The fallen golem had scrambled back to its feet and kicked the nearby tent aside.
"What are you doing?! Stop! 'Behold'!!"
Despite her command, the berserk giant golem did not stop.
"Wh-why?! Why won't it stop?"
"Rubina! What in the world did you do!?"
"I-I don't know! All the checks were normal, but as soon as I woke it up... Kyah!"
"Watch out!"
The giant golem’s foot came crashing down right where Rubina had been standing. A split second before impact, Tsukino scooped her up and leaped to safety.
"Th-thank you..."
"Think nothing of it. However, it is far too dangerous here, so please move further away. It has gone completely berserk."
"But why? I mean, I..."
Tsukino spoke to the distraught Rubina in a calm, steadying voice.
"Rubina-sama, do not panic. Stay calm and observe the golem’s mana flow."
"Eh? O-okay... 'Trace System'... Wah?! What is this?!"
When Rubina initiated the Trace System, she saw that the mana flow inside the giant golem was a chaotic mess.
"I don't understand any of this..."
As Rubina stood there on the verge of clutching her head in frustration, another voice offered further advice.
"Rubina, try using 'Spectrum Analyze'."
"Y-yes! 'Spectrum Analyze'!...Wh-whaaa?!"
Spectrum Analyze was a magi-craft spell Jin had developed to determine the frequency of mana waves. It allowed for the classification of various magi-crystals and served as the groundwork for performing Trans Info on the Northern People—who were known as the Demon Race at the time.
That aside, Rubina’s shock was well-founded. The mana waveform inside the berserk large-class golem showed a massive spike in a specific, extremely high frequency band.
"What is this... Wait, Jin-sama?!"
"Yo."
The one who had given Rubina the advice was indeed Jin. He had rushed back the moment he received an emergency message from Tsukino.
"We’ll hear the explanation later. Reiko, stop it!"
"Yes, Father."
At Jin’s command, Reiko blurred into motion. She delivered a flying kick to the side of the giant golem as it headed for the remaining tents. Enhanced by her force generator, the strike sent the giant machine tumbling more than twenty meters, despite it being over ten times her height.
However, the giant golem was not finished. It stood back up and began a heavy jog back toward them.
"It is quite sturdy, isn't it?"
Reiko tackled it again. This time, likely exerting more than double her previous power, she sent the giant golem flying fifty meters. Its chest armor was badly dented, yet it still struggled to rise. Catching the foot that tried to stomp her, Reiko swung the giant golem around and hurled it even further away.
Even after that, the machine remained functional.
"How persistent! I could break it so easily if Father hadn't told me to be careful."
Despite her grumbling, Reiko kicked the giant golem away once more. Watching the exchange, Jin felt a strange sense of admiration.
"I’m not sure if I should be impressed by Rubina’s work or just annoyed by how stubborn this thing is."
Hearing Jin’s mutterings, Rubina shrank back in shame.
"I’d hate to destroy something Rubina worked so hard to modify, but... Ah, I see."
An idea seemed to strike Jin, and he turned to Rubina.
"Rubina, did you give that golem any magic-resistant equipment, like a shield case?"
"Eh? Ah, no, I didn't."
"Perfect!"
Having confirmed that, Jin issued a new order.
"Reiko! Use the 'ether eliminator'!"
The ether eliminator—a magi-weapon that drained free ether from a target and stored it in a mana tank.
"Understood! Activating ether eliminator!"
With its control core and magi-reactor unshielded, the giant golem was helpless against the device. Drained of all energy, it finally came to a dead halt. Reiko immediately rushed in and pried the chest plating open with her bare hands. With the internal magi-devices exposed, she plucked out the control core.
The berserk giant golem was finally neutralized for good.
＊ ＊ ＊
"This is..."
Jin looked at the control core Reiko had brought back and stared in surprise.
"Say, Rubina, where did this control core come from? I suggested you try the modification, but I didn't give you a control core to use, did I?"
"Uuu... I'm sorry."
Rubina looked ready to burst into tears. Seeing this, Jin gave her head a gentle pat.
"I’m not angry. I’m just asking a question. Where did you find this 'Malite'?"
"Eh? Is it called 'Malite'?"
Malite. It was a pink magi-crystal that, at first glance, appeared to possess light and fire attributes. However, it hid a terrifying characteristic. While its magical properties were generally excellent, it overreacted to specific mana waves. More accurately, it excessively amplified certain frequencies. The bands it reacted to varied, but they were almost always in the higher frequencies.
Since high-frequency bands were often used to convey a magi craftsman's commands, this meant the crystal was prone to misinterpreting orders. Consequently, using it as a control core almost inevitably led to a rampage.
Elena, once feared as the Golden Destruction Princess, had been driven by an impulse to destroy other automata precisely because her control core was made of Malite. Similarly, the servant No. 600012, known as Rokure—who had been created by the Progenitors like No. 700672—had unknowingly used Malite for a backup automaton's core, causing it to go berserk.
The name Malite had been coined by Rokure. It combined 'Mal,' meaning bad or defective, with the mineral suffix '-ite.' In other words, the 'bad crystal.'
(Since Rokure named it, I assumed it was unique to Ars, but it exists here on Hale as well...)
Jin was internally stunned by the discovery.
"...I'm sorry. I was the one who found it."
Neige stepped forward timidly.
"You found it, Neige? Where?"
"...Inside the hole where the Magi Puppet was discovered. There was a small repository in the corner. It looked like it had been sealed, but the seal must have failed thousands of years ago."
"I see..."
If it had been sealed away, it meant even the Progenitors—though there was no record of what they called it, so Jin stuck with 'Malite'—knew it was dangerous to handle.
"Was this the only one?"
"No. There are five more."
"For the time being, please let me take charge of those."
"Okay."
And so, the Golem Incident reached its conclusion.
"Rubina! You have to stop being so thoughtless!"
"I'm sorrryy, Grandma!"
Shortly thereafter, Rubina found herself being thoroughly lectured by her grandmother, Amanda.